Golf clubs are well known in the art for use in the game of golf. Iron-type golf clubs generally have a cavity-back configuration, a muscle-back configuration, or a blade-type configuration. Amateur golfers generally prefer cavity-back, perimeter-weighted clubs because they tend to produce better shots when not struck near the center of the face. Blade-type irons generally are preferred by professional golfers and golfers of higher skill levels because they provide better feel when a golf ball is struck in the center of the face and more feedback when not struck on the center of the face. Blade-type irons also permit golfers to more readily shape shots by adding different types of spin to the ball, whereas cavity-back irons reduce or minimize the ability to shape shots.
Cavity-back iron-type club heads, also known as “perimeter weighted” irons, are known to have a concentration of mass about the periphery of a rear surface of the club head. This concentration of mass typically is in a raised, rib-like, perimeter weighting element that projects rearwardly from the club face perimeter and substantially surrounds a rear cavity, which comprises a major portion of the rear surface of the club head. In addition to locating a substantial amount of mass away from the center of the club head behind the club face, the rib-like perimeter weighting element acts as a structural stiffener, which compensates for a reduction in face thickness in the cavity region.